Harry Potter and the Slayer's World
by MrHotShotGolfer
Summary: Harry Potter is aware of his destiny and is preparing himself for it. He knows he needs help accomplishing his mission, so he seeks another soul that has had her destiny planned as well. He seeks the slayer!
1. Welcome to Sunnydale

AN: Well, my first fic. I have to say, I'm pretty proud of myself. I hope ya'll go easy on me and give me lots of feedback. Like my bio says, I am currently interested in crossover fanfics. Which, in my opinion, are some of the best stories out there. Anyway, this fic will be Buffy: the Vampire Slayer and Harry Potter. I think these two are some awesome characters. There will be romance later on between Buffy and Harry but it will take a while to develop because this is due to my opinion, and a dear friend's opinion, that any romance that takes less than a chapter for the characters to come together, isn't that great. This friend wrote an awesome fic that I have tried to find recently, but with no success. Also, any tips on British slang would be helpful. I may have friends from Britain, but I can't speak like one.

Ok…on with the disclaimer! No, I do not own anything Buffy related or Harry Potter related. That honor goes to Joss Whedon and J.K. Rowling, respectively. And for those who would like to know, this takes place in the middle of Buffy season 3, but after the Half-Blood Prince. Specifically for Buffy, is after Prom and Angel is getting ready to leave. Now on with the show!

P.S. I had to resubmit the story because of too many errors and some misinformation. So I do apologize, but here is the newer and better version of the story!

Chapter 1

The rain was coming down in waves and there was no end of it in sight. In some aspects, it seemed to reflect his mood perfectly; in fact, it was dreary, gloomy, and morbid. A brief flash of lightning illuminated the man's features. He was wearing a black leather trench coat, which was protecting him somewhat from the harsh weather, underneath that he was wearing a red t-shirt that was tucked into his black trousers, and to finish his ensemble, he was wearing black dragon hide leather. His features include a lean build, showing that he was in shape and worked hard regularly to keep it that way. His face was that of past aristocrats, high cheekbones and no ounce of fat showing whatsoever. His most striking features were his eyes, which glowed with insurmountable power and knowledge gained from recent findings and events. Above his eyes, one would find the feature that has him destined to end a war that has, despite a break, been raging for nearly fifty years. His name is Harry Potter. He had just completed his Sixth year of schooling a few months previous, and his thoughts were still on that dreadful end to the school year; he couldn't get the images out of his mind. Even after three months, that night would be burned into his memory for eternity.

He shook his head of these thoughts, and continued on with his journey. Ever since he began his quest, he couldn't help the twinge of guilt that rose up at leaving his friends behind. They wouldn't understand…they couldn't understand his reasons for doing this alone. He knew that he had to keep them safe, for one thing. He also didn't want them to be continually targeted because of him. He knew it was stupid, since his best mate's parents were involved with the war, and his other friend was on the receiving end of his enemy's vendetta. He also had left behind one of the more important people in his life, his first girlfriend. He had his reasons for leaving her, many of which were the same as the others, but some were more so. He couldn't see her hurt by the war, anymore than she already had been. And for the time being, he has had to shut down his emotions to focus on his task and to complete it as quickly as possible. Even in his heart he knew there love wouldn't have lasted, it just wasn't meant to be.

He continued walking since it helped clear his head, even if he was walking in the rain. His mind went back to the day that he visited the goblins, and he was given access to his vaults. He couldn't help but chuckle when he found out exactly what the vaults contained and from whom. All the vaults contained money, of course, and family relics. These relics included rare books, weapons, armor, paintings, and tapestries. The rare books have helped him locate the necessary materials to complete his quest, and they have also helped him become prepared for anything and everything. He also had books on demons, legends, prophecies and vampires. These books were collected from one of his ancestors that was the slayer in her day and age, Elizabeth Potter. The one woman that was destined to rid the world of all evil, and to keep the world safe from vampires, demons, and the forces of evil, she is the slayer, or more was the slayer. She was one of the few that lasted several decades and was successful in delaying the apocalypse on several occasions.

The vault that contained these books also contained weaponry that she herself had charmed to give the user the knowledge to wield said weapon and the demons it would be most affected by. Also located with the weapons was a potion designed to give said person the slayer strength and abilities; she designed the potion to give her descendants a fighting chance against the evil of the world that she fought very hard to keep at bay. Of the weapons she charmed, Harry's favorite by far is a long sword that that reminds him of pictures of Excalibur. Its weight was perfectly balanced, and suited his strength and stature to a T.

After the discovery of the books and weapons, he sent out to try and find a trunk that might possibly hold all of his newfound belongings. He located one that also had a description on how the trunk works. It had four enlarged compartments that could hold up to five times their normal capacity, and it had two compartments that were enlarged to be chambers that were interconnected. The last two chambers Harry was very impressed with. He made them into his living quarters when he was traveling and his workout chamber to keep him in shape. This chamber included all of his training gear, the weapons, weights, mats, pads, dummies, and a special device he himself created to help him become stronger and faster than ever. He made wristband that he charmed to adjust the amount of gravity being applied to the wearer by just saying, "Activate," and how much pressure he would like to be evenly distributed across his body. His living quarters had the basic necessities, including a new wardrobe that was both muggle and magical in nature. He purchased his clothing from every place that he visited along his journey, to help him to better blend in with his environment. However, all of his clothing was charmed to be stain resistant, water repellent, and tear proof. He also had the clothes charmed to always adjust to weight, height, and build.

A mournful hoot sounded off to his left, letting him know where his faithful companion was at the moment. He glanced in that direction and spotted his snowy owl, Hedwig. She was looking at him from a branch that was slightly protecting her from the environment. "I know Hedwig. We're almost there, and we'll be able to rest then," Harry murmured to her. She just looked at him, blinked, and let out a low hoot in response.

He let a small smile grace his features at his owl's antics. His journey has led them all across Europe, Asia, Japan, Africa, and now to North America. Specifically he was heading to the U.S., and more specifically he was heading to sunny California. During his travels, he learned all that he could, whether it be fighting styles, spells, handling new weaponry, and the local culture. He has now learned nearly every language on the planet. Of course, learning everything that he has thus far was not an easy task. At the beginning of his journey when he took the potion from his vault, he also found another that made the drinker become a speed-reader and learner, and also had the added benefit in giving the drinker a photographic memory. This potion was only available from his vault, and the Potter family text. He knew this would make Hermione jealous, and Ron would come up with his usual, "Wicked!" His book collection had also increased as well throughout his travels. He took every book from his vaults and put them in a trunk that he purchased before leaving Diagon Alley. The trunk's features was an endless library that one just needed to specify subject and those books would then be listed. Then the person just needed to tap their wand to the book and it would then be brought to the front.

These thoughts were interrupted by the sudden disappearance of moisture, and the reappearance of sunlight, making the weather humid and Harry's clothes stick to his skin. He looked at his surroundings and frowned for a moment; it was becoming a little too sunny for its own good. He searched through a pocket in his jacket for a moment, and with a cry of accomplishment, he put on his stylish sunglasses. This brought a smirk of satisfaction to his face when he remembered that particular attribute to his new lifestyle.

Flashback

After he had purchased the essentials for his journey, he noticed an out of the way store that had a sign in the window of an eye repairing itself after being damaged. Intrigued, he walked into the store hearing the familiar jingling noise that most stores had to notify the employees they had a customer waiting.

He was looking around in interest; there were many different styles of frames that ranged from the old and antique, to the new and improved that every teenager with an eye problem dreamed of wearing. He was just looking at the models that had some of the extra features installed, like x-ray, heat vision, telescope ability, microscopic ability, and his favorite was the seeing through invisibility cloaks and clothes in general. He could find a lot of hidden weapons on a person that had them under invisibility spells. It was at this time that he noticed a person watching him from the shadows; this person was dressed all in black and had a mysterious air about them. The fact that his eyes were completely white, somewhat freaked Harry out, but he'd seen worse.

"How can I help you today, young sir?" asked the store clerk with a strong Irish accent to his words.

"I saw…the um…sign out front. The one that has the eye being repaired, and was curious as to what the store actually does," said Harry with a slight tremor to his voice. The guy's eyes seemed to gain a spark of mirth in them when he had stuttered at the beginning, though how Harry could tell with the man's eyes being all white, he still doesn't know.

"Ah, I see."

The man turned around and headed for the back room, pausing long enough to glance back at Harry and motioned him to follow. Harry, ever the curious fellow, followed him not knowing what to expect. They both continued toward what appeared to be a locked door. And with a flick of his wrist, the man produced a key and proceeded to open the door. Again, Harry followed with no hesitation. This room contained cauldrons that were simmering with puffs of red smoke rising from them. The gentleman led Harry over a stool and gestured he take the seat. Harry complied and watched the gentlemen gather various materials, including a container labeled dragon blood and another labeled dragon scales, a beaker filled with a black substance that, for some reason, reminded him of the basilisk venom, and a couple containers labeled phoenix tears and blood. Harry was curious what the man was going to concoct with this mixture and how he was going to concoct it without sight, but he kept his opinions to himself.

"You're not the only person to think that I am incompetent, Mr. Potter. I may be blind from normal sight, but I can still see perfectly fine. Now, you might be wondering what it is that I'm brewing here," he paused here as if waiting for an answer, which he received from Harry's answering nod. "I am making an elixir that will give you the gift of the different species you have encountered thus far, that have made an impact upon your life, the phoenix tears and blood for your wand and your interaction with the Headmaster's phoenix companion, the basilisk venom from your second year of school and your run in with an actual specimen, and finally the dragon blood and scales from the TriWizard Tournament in your fourth year. The dragon blood and scales are from that same female dragon, since during the competition you made a connection of sorts. These ingredients, mixed with several others that shall remain secret, will transform your eyesight to be the best that is humanly and magically possible. You will have the capability of perfect night vision, will be able to see long distances without much strain, and will have the capacity to stun a victim with the right frame of mind and will power with just a glance. The mixture will also correct any flaws you may have at the moment, and the only glasses you'll need would be a pair of sunglasses. Which, by the way, I will offer to you a pair with charms in place to keep them from breaking, repelling water and any other substance, and also the handy feature that only yourself will be able to remove them. They will also have the added charms and features that you read about earlier in the front room. Right now you are probably wondering why I am doing all of this for an almost complete stranger; however, I do have a strange inclination that you are more than even the Daily Prophet is stating. I offer this to you, to help in the war effort, and to help me avenge my family's death from the last war. Will you accept my help?"

Harry was astonished that a complete stranger had that much hope residing in him to finish the war. He accepted the man's offer, and after two hours of brewing, the potion that Harry needed to digest. The potion was a swirl of black, red, and green representing the different species that were about to help him accomplish his goals. The potion didn't have a scent or taste to it, which Harry found strange because every other potion he had ingested over the years. The effect was instant; Harry felt like his eyes were melting straight to the back of his head and he fell to the floor in a heap. The pain was almost unbearable, but he had felt worse before. However, the pain was great enough, that he didn't notice his body changing as well. He was growing much more muscle then he had before, his reflexes were becoming faster, he was more agile, and his height also increased to what it should have been if not for the Dursley mistreatment for all those years. These changes added to the changes made from his ancestor's potion also had a reaction to his magic, making the amount of magic at his disposal grow exponentially, he now had better control of his magic, and he now had access to free floating magic that was everywhere.

When the changes were complete, he stood up and removed his glasses due to the headache they were causing. Once they were removed, he was astonished with his new eyesight. He could see everything around him in such clarity it brought a smile of satisfaction and accomplishment from the gentleman. After that, Harry gathered his possessions, his new sunglasses and left the shop. After a few steps, he remembered he forgot to thank the kind man and turned around to do so. The sight that greeted him was one of destruction. The shop he was previously in, now looked like it had been burned down and abandoned for some time. He looked around in confusion and asked a nearby patron, after covering up his scar and putting his sunglasses on, what happened to the shop. The woman looked at him as if he just grew another head, and she informed him the shop was destroyed during "You-Know-Who's" last rise to power and the family that ran it had been slaughtered in the most brutal of ways. When she left, Harry made a silent vow to honor the man's last request and to thank him for the precious gift. An answering breeze ruffled his hair, and he smiled a sad smile at no one in particular.

End Flashback

Harry would always remember that man, spirit, for the assistance that he gave him. He knew the gifts he gave him would help greatly during his excursion. He knew he could wear the sunglasses all the time due to the enhancements to his eyesight, so he only wore them when it was particularly sunny. Of course, the sun was getting ready to set soon, and he knew he was close to reaching his destination.

His destination was one he had heard rumors about during his travels. He knew that the slayers, he was still shocked by that news, lived here to protect the surrounding area from the Hellmouth. He was hoping to enlist the aide of one of them to help him out on his journey and on the war front. He also figured that staying here and helping for a while, would be a benefit for him to learn from an actual slayer. By now, the sun had set and he was just entering the town that would hopefully bring some new experiences that would benefit him. He stopped and looked around him at the city that he had entered. He noticed a sign to his left and smirked when he read it. "Welcome to Sunnydale!"

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	2. Introductions to the Scooby Gang

AN: Sweet! I have reviewers, how about that! I would like to thank those that reviewed, I may not be able to do it within this AN, but I will show my appreciations by taking all of your words of advice into account. Now, I know it's been a few days since I updated, that's due to work getting in the way. Believe me, when you work a couple of 12-hour days, and then one 16-hour day, work can get very…harsh. Anyway, I'm back and with a new chapter to boot! Enjoy!

Chapter 2

As Harry was walking through town, he couldn't help but wonder what the slayer would be like. He was also hoping that she would be able to help him with training in the physical aspects, as well as assisting him with the war. He knew she wouldn't just come with him without something in return; as a result, he was prepared to offer his services with anything that she may need. As he was walking past a graveyard, he heard sounds of flesh hitting flesh and went to investigate.

What he saw made him pause and listen before he acted. He saw one petite, blonde girl fighting against another girl, this one a brunette. They were speaking to each other as they traded blows, so he thought he'd sneak up and listen in; since he, of course, needed more information on the situation. On one hand, it looked like the two women were training for an upcoming battle, and on the other…they were getting close to ripping each other's heads off. He already knew that both of the young women were the slayers by their auras, but he needed to know more about the situation.

"What are you doing here Faith, I thought you'd be with your pal planning the apocalypse," stated the blonde while dodging a roundhouse kick sent from the now named Faith.

"What's the matter B? Can't handle the pressure? The Mayor will own this town, and there's nothing that you can do about it," Faith panted out to the other slayer.

Faith and "B" continued fighting each other, and off in the distance, Harry could also see another person fighting some vampires. The thing that was off with this person was, according to Harry's senses, another vampire. This confused him a little. 'Since when does a vampire assist a slayer in vanquishing other vampires,' Harry thought to himself. While everything was going on around him, Harry was getting ready just in case he needed to step in and help. He made sure that he had his essentials. This included his sword, two daggers, two wands, and his dragon hide vest, and all items were in their correct positions. The extra wand was another asset he gained from looting around his vaults. The wand once belonged to Godric Gryffindor; he had entrusted the Potters with his belongings due to him being unable to produce an heir. The wand contained four magical cores, the first being a hair of the griffin that made his house at Hogwarts so famous, the second was from the feather of a hippogriff, the third was from a heartstring of a long extinct lava dragon, and the final core was a scale from Slytherin's basilisk. These cores were enclosed in a beautiful mixture of Holly wood and the bone of the same lava dragon that also gave a heartstring. The color of the wand was that of light brown and ivory white; the two colors were swirling around each other forming a spiral design.

A loud thud brought his attention back to the fight. It appeared that "B" had been kicked in the face and was knocked into a tombstone that broke in half. 'That had to hurt," was the only thought on Harry's mind at the moment. He then focused on what Faith was doing, and was shocked to see her bringing out a katana from a sheath on her back.

"You know B, I will miss these little encounters of ours. After I finish with you, I will be going after your boy toy over there," Faith said while reacquainting herself with the weapon in her possession. Harry looked over towards the strange vampire, and it appeared that he was just barely hanging on in his battle. "Of course, since he broke it off with you, he's not much yours anymore, is he?" sneered Faith at the fallen slayer. "It's been nice knowing you, _Buffy_, but…actually it hasn't been all that nice." With that said, Faith brought the katana up for a killing blow.

Harry, finally being brought out of his stupor, realized that he had made the decision of which slayer to ask for and which needed his help. As he was pulling out his sword, he was focusing his magic on a silent apparition to the spot just above the slayer's position. With a swirl of silent air, Harry disappeared from his hiding spot and reappeared in time to block the blow from the dark haired slayer turned traitor. With a clash, the two swords impacted each other and caused Faith to jump back away from the new obstacle in her way to being rid of the other slayer.

"Who the Hell are you? And where did you come from?" demanded Faith while trying to regain her senses.

"I am many things miss; to some, I am a friend; to others, I am a savior; and to my enemies, I am their worst nightmare. I am a person that has yet to die, even though there has been plenty of opportunity. I never give up even if the situation is dire. But to you, it appears you fall in the third category," stated Harry, British accent and all, which made Faith growl in annoyance, and "B" to groan quietly.

"Not another Brit! Is there a problem with you people staying in your own damn country! Oh well, I'll just have to show you the way." With that, Faith attacked Harry using her speed to her advantage. Of course, she did this with the assumption that she would be faster and stronger than her opponent.

Harry met each and every one of the young woman's blows. And he either parrying her blows or using his reflexes to his advantage and twisting away from the speeding blade. Faith was growing more frustrated by the second and was trying to think of a way to end this fight before she got hurt. She knew she didn't stand a chance with the odds heavily in his favor; as in, she knew absolutely nothing about the stranger, and that frightened her since she didn't know if he was holding back and toying with her, or if he wasn't skilled and she was only tired from her fight with Buffy. After another round of thrusts, swipes, lunges, and swings, Faith jumped back slightly out of breath.

"I don't know what you think you're doing here, but it would be in your best interest to leave before my strength returns and I come to kick your ass!" With that declaration, Faith retreated back to her apartment that the mayor had set up for her.

Harry watched her leave as he returned his blade to its sheath on his waist. Making sure she wasn't coming back, he turned around to assist the injured slayer back to her feet. His instincts kicked in while he was turning and he apparated to just behind the threat. The slayer he had lent a hand to, had just tried to punch his skull. His abrupt disappearance caused the slayer to lose her balance and fall to the ground with a dull thud.

"You know, trying to give someone a lump on their head, isn't the best way of thanking someone," he wryly told the slayer that turned around in surprise at hearing his voice.

"How did you do that? And for that matter, who are you?" she asked, and then narrowed her eyes when he opened his mouth to repeat what he said earlier. "And not what you told Faith either. I want something that resembles a normal answer, like your name and where you came from."

He just raised his eyebrows in admiration and replied, "Well, you certainly do have quite the personality, eh lass?" He became more serious after she sent another glare his way for the last comment. "Ok, I'll be more than happy to disclose the information you seek, after we head indoors and become more comfortable. My tale is long, and I have traveled quite a ways."

As Harry was talking, Buffy noticed that Angel had dispatched the vampires he was facing and was heading over to check on her after he witnessed the spectacle the stranger performed. He had seen that type of magic before, and he was wondering what one of them might be doing in the town. He walked over to Buffy to make sure she had no injuries, but he stopped short to maintain some distance between them. He turned his attention to the leather clad young man and asked the first thing that came to mind.

"What is a wizard doing here in Sunnydale, may I ask?"

That brought the teen short. He glanced back towards the vampire with narrowed eyes. "Well, interesting question to ask vampire. I could ask you a similar question with, why are you attacking your own kind?" Harry asked while double-checking all of his items were in the right places.

"Wait, wait, wait! What do you mean by wizard, and how can you tell Angel's a vampire?" asked the confused slayer that was still recovering from her fight with Faith.

Harry glanced at the aforementioned Angel, then towards the slayer and replied, "That explanation, again, can wait until we meet your watcher at your base of operation. Until then, you can be patient B."

That earned him an even more heated glare from the girl that was getting to her feet. "What did you call me, Brit boy!" she growled and was about to stalk up to the stranger and show what a slayer is made of.

Harry raised his hands in surrender and was slowly backing away from the irate slayer. "I didn't mean any offense. I heard…Faith, was it? I heard her call you that. I assumed that's the name that you prefer. If it's not…how about we at least get the introductions out of the way. My name is Harry, and yours is?"

Buffy's glare lost most of the intensity that it previously held. "I'm Buffy. And…hold on. You said 'my watcher'? How do you know I have a watcher, and for that matter, how you know what a watcher is in the first place." At his sigh of annoyance, Buffy relented the questions and said with a hint of sarcasm in her voice, "I know, I know. I'll lead the way." With that, Buffy started to head towards the high school library and Harry and Angel followed diligently.

During the silent trek to the school, Buffy was trying to figure out the newest player in the game that is her life. He looked like he could handle himself in any situation that was presented to him. He was wearing a sword comfortably on his body, which spoke of high experience with wielding the weapon. He also had a confident stride, she noticed, as they were only seconds away from entering the library. And being the girl that she is, she did notice that he was very handsome and could turn a few heads if he were trying. She was brought out of her musing when they entered the library.

When they made their appearance, the six occupants of the room were surprised into silence by the appearance of another person. Everyone noticed right away that the stranger had the innate ability to silence a room without meaning too. Each of the occupants was making their own opinions of the young man. While they were scrutinizing his appearance into their domain, he was also sizing each of them up. The one with the outrageously bright Hawaiian shirt seemed to be just another person there to help bleed the tension out of tough situations. The next person he analyzed was another brunette that appeared to be one of those giggly schoolgirls that only cared about one thing: herself.

The next two to come under his gaze appeared to be a couple. Of course, the holding of each other's hands might have brought that conclusion to mind. One appeared to be the silent type and had an aura that Harry was very familiar with. He would need more information before he passed judgment. The female that was clinging to the male appeared to be one of the studious types that tried to avoid attention if ever possible, and by her aura she was a very powerful witch of some sort; again, he would need additional facts to make sense of his initial finds.

The last two people were both gentlemen dressed in suits. One appeared to be older than the other and was wearing a tweed suit with the jacket hanging off the back of a nearby chair. Harry could also sense a power within him that seemed a little tainted; from what, Harry didn't know, but he was sure to find out. The other one was dressed in an all black suit that he had buttoned up to the fullest. He seemed to have an air of arrogance about him, which could easily annoy anyone that didn't have enough patience to stomach it. He also seemed to be a person that didn't enjoy being ignored and always needed to be the center of attention. Harry concluded that these two were the watchers. This could make things a little harder for him, but he would deal with it.

"Um…Buffy? When one is keeping her secret identity a secret, one doesn't usually bring strangers to meetings of the utmost importance! Care to explain yourself?" asked the younger, British watcher. He didn't know what was wrong with his slayer; she took too many chances when doing her duty, it was amazing that she had made it at all to her 18th birthday.

Buffy narrowed her eyes in annoyance at the younger man's tone, "Wesley, it isn't my fault that Harry here knows more than a person should. He mentioned watchers before I could try to find an explanation to clarify what he had seen. He also did this weird trick that he disappeared from one place, and he then reappeared in another. Oh yeah…Angel also mentioned that he was a wizard. Do you have any idea what's going on?" She then looked worried when both watchers' eyes widened at the revelation that a wizard was in Sunnydale. "Giles, what do you know?"

Giles was normally one that nothing surprised him, but the fact was something had just surprised him beyond anything before. He had heard of the secret society of Wizards and Witches of the world. How they liked their privacy and rarely left the safety of their comfort zone. He also had heard their magic was a little different compared to that of the Wicca's. They could do everyday things with a flick of a "wand."

"Well, uh this is certainly an interesting development. A wizard…I had only heard the rumors of your world. If I may ask, why it is that you are here…Harry?" Giles asked while cleaning his glasses, which did show how nervous the former watcher was of the situation.

"I am here to offer some sort of alliance with the slayer for the time being. I would then ask if possible that she might also train me in the arts of demon 'slaying.' This is because I find myself in the predicament of having a slayer as an ancestor, and also the added bonus of her making a discovery that has given me the slayer's strength and abilities but not the innate knowledge of demons. You two might very well know her history, her name was…"

"Elizabeth Potter," finished Giles for their guest in awe. "She was one of the few that survived to old age, and she was also the only magical person to become a slayer since the beginning. How extraordinary, but I have a feeling that there is more to your story."

"Indeed there is. I would also like to ask for the slayer's help. My homeland is at war with an evil sorcerer by the name he fashioned himself of Lord Voldemort. I have been fighting with him since I was but a babe. I am on a journey to learn all that I can, the different magic types, fighting styles, and anything else that might come up. When I have completed that part of my quest, I will then return back to Britain and locate some items that I need to destroy to be rid of Voldemort once and for all. However, that time is far from now, and I need to learn all I can in the present in order to accomplish this goal. I came to Sunnydale, because of the rumors that there were two slayers here. I knew I needed additional training for my added abilities, and I also knew I would need help when I was ready to return home. What do you think Buffy? You train me, I help you out here in Sunnydale, and in exchange you assist me when I return home?"

"Excuse me here, good man. But I am not sure that is the best of things to do at this present time," stated an agitated Wesley. Of course, he had heard of Elizabeth Potter. Every watcher had heard of the traitorous slayer that broke away from the council's grasp to do her own thing. He needed to get this information to the Council right away.

"Well…I think before we decide, we need to have introductions first, I think. My name is Rupert Giles. The man that was just speaking is Wesley Wyndam-Pryce. The young lad in the very bright shirt is Xander Harris. The young lady next to him is Cordelia Chase. The couple on the couch is Oz and Willow Rosenberg. You've already met Buffy Summers and Angel. And from the information you have provided, you are Harry Potter?"

"Yes, and I also have another proposition to put before you lot. It involves your young friend named Oz. I noticed he has a lot of the symptoms associated with a werewolf. I propose that I make a potion called Wolfs bane for him. This potion will allow the person to keep their mind after their transformation. What say you to that?" asked Harry with a small smirk at their shocked faces of him finding out what Oz was in such a short amount of time, and that he had a way for Oz to never worry about escaping and hurting another person.

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	3. Surprises

AN: Quite a turnout for this story. I was hoping it would be a pretty popular fic. Let's all hope for some more support. I always enjoy a good review. Anyway, chapter 3 is here folks! Again, thanks to all of those that have reviewed. It means a lot to know people enjoy my work. So, thanks ya'll!

Chapter 3

The silence from his last statement was getting annoying to say the least. Harry was looking for something to drink but noticed nothing on hand; he shrugged his shoulders, brought his wand out of his holster and with a flick of his wrist…a pot of tea was on the table along with six cups. He calmly walked over, poured himself a cup, and another flick and a comfortable reclining chair appeared. He was on his third sip, when the first person came out of the stupor.

Willow wasn't normally one to break the silence, nor was she very vocal when she was around a complete stranger. But his statement that he could help Oz beyond measure, and then the feats of magic that she could only imagine doing after hours of spell casting with just a simple wave of his wand, put her over the breaking point.

"How did you do that? I can't even attempt that sort of spell without another two people around. Conjuring is one of the most difficult types of magic there is. And can you really help Oz?" Willow asked with a large amount of hope in her eyes and not once did she stutter.

All of her friends were looking at her in admiration, which caused the red headed witch to blush and bury her face in her boyfriend's chest. Oz wrapped his arms around his girlfriend for comfort and also to keep him anchored to reality. If he could believe what Harry was saying, he'd never have to worry about hurting another human being ever again. If he ever got loose while transformed and he hurt someone, he would never be able to forgive himself. Then something that the wizard had stated earlier was brought to the forefront of his mind.

"You said you noticed that I had the symptoms of a person being a werewolf. Have you known other werewolves?" Oz asked, with just a hint of curiosity in his normally expressionless eyes.

Harry looked towards the couple on the couch to answer both of their questions. "To answer the last question first. Yes, I have met several werewolves during my travels and before even. One of my parents' best friends is a werewolf. He has been one since his early childhood. As for the other questions," Harry was saying, while giving a, somewhat, teasing look to Willow, "it has taken me sometime to be able to conjure objects of this size. I also agree with your statement that conjuring is a tough art, but if you have the basics of it learnt in Transfiguration, its not that much harder. As for helping Oz, I wouldn't have brought up the fact that I could if I didn't intend to help him."

"You do know, that the best way to get in my good graces is to help my friends, right?" Buffy asked while giving a small smile to her two friends on the couch. It was nice to see them this happy. In fact, they hadn't looked this happy since they first started seeing each other the previous year.

Harry looked over at the slayer after her, in what he believed to be, rhetorical question. "I had hoped that it would, but I know from first hand experience, that won't satisfy your desire to know more about me and my world. So, I am prepared to take any test that you may formulate to prove my worthiness."

"Now, Buffy, I object to this entire situation. You can't truly believe what he is telling you. Now, I admit the prospect of helping one of your friends with his monthly troubles is very exciting. However, the information the council has on this person's ancestor isn't the greatest of good deeds," at this point, Harry's eyes were narrowing by the second until they were nothing but slits that were aimed as Wesley, "she was a trouble maker that didn't follow any of the council's orders and eventually quit the council and lived her life away from civilization."

As her watcher's explanation finally came to a close, Buffy had made her decision about Harry Potter. If his ancestor acted like that there was only one thing to say to the British teen. "Welcome to the gang, Mr. Potter. I will be more than happy to teach you all that I know. The decision to leave and help you out is still of the not sure nature. But I will give you my answer some time in the future."

Harry smiled at her answer and was nodding along with the rest of her explanation. "That's just fine with me. I can certainly take in the sights and sounds of Sunnydale while I am waiting for that answer. Of course, the training will be involved with that as well, I would assume so?"

Buffy was actually getting ready to leave with her friends and go to the Bronze since it was still so early. "Huh? Oh yeah, yeah, the training will be in there somewhere. I'll even have Giles and Wesley help us out. Won't you guys?" Buffy asked the two older gentlemen with raised eyebrows just begging them to refuse her request.

"Of course Buffy, we'll help any way that we can. We'll get to work on a schedule of sorts to help keep us organized during these stressful times. Now since your patrolling is done for the night, I assume that you lot are heading to the Bronze?" at their nods of agreement, Giles continued, "Alright, I would advise taking Harry to let him experience American teenage culture. Even though it might ruin him for the rest of his life. It is necessary that he experiences all that he can while here on the Hell Mouth, both the good and the bad."

Meanwhile, back at the Mayor's office, Faith was recounting her fight with the stranger and not leaving out any detail whatsoever. She explained, how it was that the stranger seemed to just have appeared out of thin air when she was so close to ending the other slayer's life. After that comment, the Mayor seemed to become a little tense, before it left his body with the breath he exhaled. When Faith was finished, she waited until the mayor had organized his thoughts on the matter before asking one of the more pivotal questions.

"What are we going to do sir?"

At the question, the Mayor lifted his eyes from studying his desktop to the young woman across from him. He noticed that when the question was asked, her voice had a tiny shake to it. It appeared that Faith didn't like the idea that a man had a power that could rival her own, but he wasn't a demon that she could slay. He tried to ease her fears on the matter.

"Don't worry that pretty little head of yours, my dear. We will continue the plan as scheduled. Graduation is in two weeks, and we must be ready for the plan to begin the night before. You know what you need to do for that. Well, I think we should call it a night then, don't you?"

After Faith left, that then left the Mayor to his thoughts. He knew of magic that could transport someone like that which Faith described. He hoped that he was wrong about his assumption. If a wizard were in town, it would make things very difficult. 'Very difficult indeed,' thought the Mayor with a glare directed out the window.

The teens had all gone to the Bronze, to dance and relax their worries and stress away. Harry was actually having a grand time. He had learned to dance since he had left the months previous. He had learned dances from long forgotten rituals, to the modern dances of rock and hip-hop. His teacher was a master of the dance, and she had given him enough of her knowledge, that he would not be embarrassed on the dance floor from now on.

Right then he was dancing to a fast paced song with a bunch of other people in a group. These were some of his favorites, having never really gotten over his fear of slow dances with a single partner. Oh, he could do it and do it well, but he has never been able to feel that intimate reaction one would when dancing with a significant other. He held the hope that one day, he would be able to enjoy and bask in the feelings one would have with that type of dance.

Harry was enjoying the feeling the dance provided for him. It made him forget the war, his training, for just a moment. And in that moment, Harry felt like any other teenager; he was out on the town in a club, mingling with new friends and companions, and just enjoying himself.

As the dance came to an end, Harry himself went up to the bar to get himself something to drink. When he was sipping at his drink, to quench his thirst, his thoughts returned to that of the journey here when things were being explained to him. He had learned about Buffy's past exploits and what she had endured up to this point. He was still in awe of what he had heard for her fist major slay, the Master. He couldn't help but chuckle at the irony of their friendship after he heard that tale, the boy-who-lived and the slayer that died and was brought back to life through resuscitation. He couldn't help but admire her, especially after everything that she has had to endure. Their lives were so similar; it was scary to think about it. She, like himself, didn't let the past dictate the present. She would never forget her experiences, but that would make her that much stronger for it, in the end.

He shook his head, when he remembered the next part of her adventurous life. The way that her friends and herself had described Spike, it sounded a lot like he was a Malfoy, with his sleeked back blonde hair and his unbearable attitude. It sounded like they had one Hell of a time with him and his lover Drusilla. Then everything did go to Hell. When Angel had that one moment of true happiness with Buffy, and his soul was then released back to the afterlife. When he became Angelus and tortured her friends, he couldn't imagine what he would have done in her shoes. When he was trying to destroy the world, Buffy was there to stop him and send him to a Hell dimension; of course, it made it all worse since Buffy had loved him very deeply.

His drink gone, he went back to the bar and had it refilled. His thoughts were now resting on what had transpired this last year. When Faith had arrived, she was actually helping Buffy, rather than fight her, as she was earlier. Then they come upon the information of the Mayor and his Ascension plans. They had tried to stop him at every turn, even though they had hardly any information about the Ascension. It wasn't until Anya had started hanging out with them, that the information started to come. But then, disaster had struck the gang, and Faith had murdered a human. To murder a human, was not allowed for a slayer. Their powers were only supposed to be used against demons, vampires, and all that was evil. To kill a human, was to seal your own fate. After that event, Faith started to become unhinged in a way that she wasn't agreeing with what Buffy and the others were doing. Then she joined forces with the Mayor and began to aid him in his plans. She even attempted to steal Angel's soul, after his return some months previous, to have him become her boyfriend, rather than Buffy's. During that little exploit, the gang gathered most of the information that they had concerning the Mayor's Ascension. The gang also found out about Faith's betrayal and new allegiance. This is when Harry arrived and fought Faith in the cemetery.

He shook his head of the dismal thoughts. He was out relaxing for the first time in months; he didn't need to think about what needed to be done, just for tonight, he'll think about himself. He looked over at the new group of friends that he had made. Xander and Anya were talking about something, with Anya looking puzzled. Cordelia was throwing herself at Wesley, and he had no idea what was going on, here Harry rolled his eyes at his obliviousness. Willow and Oz were on the dance floor enjoying the closeness of their relationship.

He looked towards Buffy, whom was watching her friends as they enjoyed their evening. He knew she was beautiful, how could a person not know? Her blonde hair and petite build, made her that more irresistible. He liked her wit and attitude as well. He knew that she could take care of herself, which was a plus. And since she had a lot of the same experiences as Harry, it was nice to be able to talk with someone about those same instances and the feelings about them. He knew that he probably didn't stand a chance right now, with Buffy still in love with Angel, even though he himself is planning to leave as soon as the Ascension has been dealt with. He would remain her friend, ally, and student for the time being.

Harry was brought from his musings when a polite cough from right in front of him, made his eyes lower to the eyes that held a little amusement from his staring at her. He hadn't realized that Buffy had moved in front of him while he was deep in thought. He offered her a smile and asked what was up.

"It's getting late. So, we need to decide where you are staying while you're here. And…you have yet to explain your story. We've spent the evening going over our lives and adventures. It's your turn now," Buffy said while acting like he hadn't been staring at her for so long. She had noticed his stare right away, and she herself found her eyes lingering on his form, especially his eyes. His eyes, she noticed, held a lot of sorrow and pain. He hadn't yet explained his life to them, but she already knew that he had a troubled past by just his beautiful emerald eyes… 'Stop that!' she thought to herself. 'It's too soon since Angel.'

Harry just nodded at her to show that he understood. He glanced around the club again and noticed that it was starting to empty of the lively crowd. He followed Buffy out of the exit and into the cooler night air. For being in California, it certainly was chilly, Harry noted as he put on his leather jacket. Buffy and Harry met up with the rest of the gang, which was on its way to Buffy's house. Harry said that he would explain his past there, and if Buffy didn't mind, if he could set up his trunk at her place. Of course, she was confused by the inquiry. 'Why does he just want to leave his trunk at my place?' she thought to herself. She shrugged her shoulders when Harry said that he would explain at the house.

When they approached the Summers home, Buffy's mother was outside waiting for her. Joyce normally didn't wait up for Buffy, but she had a feeling that something was different tonight. She was relieved to see the outlines of Buffy and her friends, but then her feelings became reality when she noticed the last member of the group. He didn't look familiar, but he seemed to have the badass persona working for him. With the leather jacket, the untamable hair, and his emerald eyes, Joyce just knew that this boy was trouble from the get go.

"Hi mom! What are you still doing up?" asked Buffy, as the group made their way inside. Joyce's fears were relieved to some degree, as the strange young man just followed the group inside and no one had to invite him in.

"Well Buffy, it's just that tonight you stayed out later than normal. Then when you get home, you bring a stranger into the house. The only plus side is, since no one had to say 'Come on in' he's not a vampire. So…can you introduce me to your new _friend_?" asked the agitated mother on the verge of a nervous breakdown.

Buffy was like a deer in the headlights. She had so much going on tonight, that she forgot to introduce Harry to her mother. "Well…you see…this is Harry. He's a new friend that is on a journey and he stopped to ask for my help in a problem he has back home," the nervous slayer stated to the older woman that had her narrowed eyes on both Harry and Buffy.

"And _why_ would a complete stranger, walk up to you and ask for help? Does he know something about your lifestyle?" asked the mother that was starting to worry for her daughter.

"Ma'am, I assure you that I only came here since my predicament is in dire need of assistance. You see I have a problem with an evil…mad man back home. I need the slayer's skills to help develop my own. Well, this mad man has had me be his main target for quite some time now, and I needed help in learning to defend myself as well as others. You see…oh forget it! I am a wizard that has had a potion that has helped me gain the strength and skills of a slayer. But I need Buffy's help to hone those skills to perfection. I am in the midst of a war back home against a person that has had me on his to kill list since I was one. Any questions?" asked Harry, as he was tired of lying to Buffy's mother. Harry had never been one to lie consistently before, so he figured since Buffy's mother already knew her situation.

Joyce just looked at the teen in front of her like he was crazy. Wizard? Yeah right! She can believe that demons and vampires existed. But magic? Not possible. Her disbelief must have shown in her eyes, because the teen sighed and brought out…a stick? He waved the stick and a snake appeared before her. She leapt back away from it and screamed. She screamed louder when the teen started making hissing noises at it. But it appeared the snake understood the noises and actually started to behave very strangely. It was bowing…yes bowing to each individual in the room like the teen was introducing it or something. When the snake had finished with everyone, another wave of the stick and the snake disappeared.

When the teen and the entire group turned to Buffy's mother. They were surprised to hear a thump on the ground. Joyce apparently couldn't handle what she was being shown. "Well, she asked for it by not believing me. But maybe the parseltongue act was a little too much," stated Harry as he rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously.

The ending to this chapter was brought to you by…my creative genius! Nah just thought it'd be funny. Anyway, I love to get reviews from my readers, so…please review!


	4. An Epic Tale

Chapter 4

After the incident involving Harry proving exactly what he can do, Joyce was actually very mellow around him. She especially enjoyed what he could do with the cleaning and cooking charms that Mrs. Weasley had been showing him for a number of years. The explanation on what and how his trunk worked actually took a little bit longer than he had expected; however, the explanation on his past and his own adventures is what took most of the night and into the next morning. It was a good thing the next day was Saturday.

**_Flashback_**

When Joyce was awakened and everyone was in the Summers' living room, Harry started his tale. He didn't go into any unnecessary detail about his life before Hogwarts, but he did explain that he didn't grow up in the optimum circumstances.

He explained his first year of Hogwarts, and how he had to protect the Philosopher's Stone from Voldemort's clutches. From the confused expressions on everyone's faces, he knew he also needed to explain the importance of the stone. When he described the effects the stone had on a person, everyone's confusion vanished. 'I could almost see the light bulb turn on over all of their heads,' thought Harry with a tiny smirk.

His second year took a little longer to explain. He had to explain to everyone why his ability to speak with snakes wasn't considered a light art. He also explained because of this talent, he was considered to be Slytherin's heir by most of the student body. After he described the poly juice potion and its effects, a lot of the gang looked kind of ill. 'Can't blame them really, since I nearly lost it after I drank the bloody thing!' Harry thought to himself. The Chamber of Secrets and what it contained, had Willow hanging onto Oz for dear life. He enlightened them on the basics of the basilisk and how he defeated it. The part of Tom Riddle possessing a friend of his, Harry noticed some looks of sympathy going through the group. 'Hmm…they left a few things out when explaining their lives.'

Third year Harry described with as little detail as possible. He did let on about the Wolfsbane and that he would make it for Oz for the next full moon. He gave them the basics where Wormtail and Sirius were concerned. Even if it had been over a year since his death, Harry still missed his Godfather as much as when it first happened.

Fourth year got a little more attention due to the fact that Voldemort returned during that school year. He went into further detail describing the TriWizard Tournament, and how it was only supposed to have three champions from the three European schools of magic. He went on to tell how someone then charmed the Goblet to also select a fourth champion from a made up school. Of course, the fourth champion it selected was Harry. He then portrayed the tasks that he needed to complete with the other champions. The group gasped aloud when he described the situations he found himself in. Harry, of course, kept the part about the Yule Ball to himself. 'I don't need to embarrass myself any further than needs to be done.'

When he described the last challenge and how Voldemort regained his body, the group was at the edge of their seats wondering how he survived his encounter with Voldemort once again. He tried to portray the setting in which he found himself in after the portkey dropped Cedric and himself in the graveyard. The rebirthing ceremony wasn't described in detail, but his escape was. He couldn't help but feel he was telling a story to a bunch of kids at bedtime. He could almost assume that his story was just that…a story; however, since he did live it, he knew otherwise.

His fifth year was just as eventful as the others. He told them how the Ministry had ridiculed him for supposedly lying about the return of Voldemort, and about the trial he received for protecting himself and his cousin from dementors. When he got to the point that the Ministry was even willing to influence them by hiring an incompetent teacher, he received some looks of understanding from them. 'That's right, they've had some interesting teachers in the past as well.' He then got into the "illegal" club that Hermione and Ron had thought up and made him lead. He was also showing them the scars he received from the detentions he had with Umbridge.

Here, Harry had to pause to drink some tea that he had conjured earlier. He also noticed that no one else, besides Giles and himself, had tried the tea. When he was looking at the almost full pot, Buffy explained that they didn't particularly like the bitter liquid. Harry just shrugged his shoulders and went on to explain the ending to his fifth year.

The department of mysteries was an interesting place to describe, not to mention trying to describe how they got there in the first place. He described most of the rooms as well as he could, and he also let them know exactly how many prophesies that were held in the extremely large room. The fight between the death eaters and the students weren't explained in much detail besides what Harry witnessed and did himself. 'Can't really explain how everyone else's battles went since I wasn't there.'

The battle at the veil was described in a lot more detail then was actually necessary, but no one took notice of this fact. Harry told them that when Dumbledore had arrived to help turn the tide of the battle, his Godfather had become distracted when his cousin shot him in the chest and sent him through the veil. He had chased Bellatrix to the entrance of the Ministry and had tried to cast the Cruciatus Curse at her. He explained the significance of the curse, and its consequences if caught using it. Of course, it hadn't worked because Harry didn't feel true hatred for the woman that stole his Godfather away.

The fight between Dumbledore and Voldemort still stood out in his mind. The magic that both were using were incredible, to say the least. When Voldemort possessed him, he described the intense pain that had circulated throughout his body until he thought about his loved ones, specifically his Godfather. The explanation of the prophesy was short as Harry didn't want to burden his new friends, though he did notice Buffy flinch when he mentioned there was a prophesy concerning himself and Voldemort.

He then went on to explain his sixth year. How he had a new Potion's professor that he himself had to convince to come and teach for the year. He told them the stresses that came from being Quidditch Captain; trying to pass Defense Against the Dark Arts with Snape being the teacher, and the private lessons that Dumbledore was giving him about Voldemort's life as Tom Riddle. His awkward start to his relationship with Ginny. When he said that, it looked like Buffy deflated a little bit in disappointment. 'Hmm…wonder why?'

The information about the horcruxes made everyone gasp with shock and horror that someone would willingly split their soul to stay alive. He went on to say that Dumbledore and himself had already destroyed two, the Ring of Slytherin and Tom Riddle's diary; however, with the information that there was a total of seven, things didn't seem to be getting any better. He described how Malfoy had been acting strange all year and no one could find him at all. He then told them about Dumbledore inviting him to come and retrieve another of Voldemort's horcruxes. That description was very short due to the feelings it brought up about Harry's former headmaster.

The Scooby gang did notice that Harry's mood during this part of his tale seemed a bit down and wondered what might have happened. When he next explained that after they returned from retrieving the locket, they had found out that the school had the Dark Mark, in all its horrid glory, above the highest roof. Harry's eyes had a light mist to them when he finally dredged up the courage and told them about his headmaster's fate after they had landed on the roof. He went into a more detailed description after that, explaining the chase through the school after Snape had killed Dumbledore, and the confrontation that occurred when Harry had caught up with Snape at the gates before he disappeared.

The funeral and the time after were also described in as much detail as Harry could bring to mind. He then started to go over the weeks after he had left the school and his friends behind. His little shopping adventure in Diagon Alley and the numerous adventures since, were also described in detail since he wanted everyone up to date with everything that had occurred. Of course, after the explanation on the trunk, everyone had to have a tour. Harry said he'd be more than happy to oblige their curiosity in the morning, since the hour was growing later by the second. He finished his tale with his decision to find another Slayer to help him improve his skills, and to also offer his own assistance in any problems that she may need assistance in.

During Harry's long life story and explanation, Giles was silently thinking over everything he had learned the past few hours. He, like Wesley, had learned the history of every slayer that had ever lived, it was required reading of course! He was just glad that Wesley was privileged to learn of the information that Harry was granting them with, since Giles knew that Wesley would report it straight back to the Council. Giles was glad of one thing, however. He knew that with Faith turning on them, and Angel's decision to leave Sunnydale, Buffy was losing herself to a mild case of depression. Harry's appearance, and proposal to assist her in anything she may need, had lessened those blows considerably. Giles also thought he noticed a glint of attraction forming in her eyes, and he silently groaned to himself. 'Not again!' After his silent declaration, everyone decided that was all that needed to be discussed at this time, and everyone decided that it would be wise if everyone slept at the Summers' residence due to the late hour.

**_End Flashback_**

The morning after his arrival in Sunnydale, Harry was awake and warming up for his daily routine of jogging, stretching, strength training, more stretching, a long ride on a stationary bike, and again more stretching. He had learned his lesson about the stretching after the first day he decided to start exercising heavily. He still winced at the memory. Of course, taking a leisurely shower afterwards, was always a great way to help loosen the muscles up further, and to get rid of the body odor that had started to develop from the heavy workout.

He looked at the clock on the wall after drying off and figured everyone should be getting out of bed soon. He dressed in some comfortable black jeans, white t-shirt over his dragon hide vest, and to finish his ensemble, he pulled on his black dragon hide boots and belt. He climbed out of his trunk and made his way towards the kitchen. Just a short distance from the kitchen door, he heard the tale-tale sounds of a person quietly making breakfast, and he decided to offer some assistance to, he assumed, Mrs. Summers. He entered the kitchen as quietly as he could, and he just stopped and stared for a few moments at the woman moving about the kitchen with ease.

Joyce Summers was a person that normally didn't wake up after only a few hours of rest, just full of energy and wanting to tackle the daily tasks that needed completing. However, after the revelation that there was another person out there capable of amazing things that wanted to help her daughter, she couldn't help it! She was happy that someone had decided to watch over her daughter, since she knew that the past while hadn't been the easiest on her only daughter. She figured she'd help out the nice British teen and her daughter start the day right and decided to make a traditional American breakfast: homemade pancakes, bacon, and scrambled eggs. She hadn't decided whether to just make coffee or tea, so she made both, and the tea was made to the specifications that Mr. Giles had given to her before. As she was just putting the finishing touches on the breakfast fit for a small army, 'Teenagers are always hungry, especially growing male teenagers…I should have made more pancakes,' Joyce never noticed the arrival of said male, British teenager.

Harry had watched Mrs. Summers going about making a breakfast that would put Mrs. Weasley to shame. He just watched her, drinking in the details, and wondering if that is how his own mother would have been, if she'd been given the opportunity to live to make a breakfast of this magnitude. He shook his head of these depressing thoughts, and made his way silently to the bar to pour himself a cup of the steaming tea Mrs. Summers had placed on the counter just a moment before.

As he was taking his first sip, Joyce was balancing another plateful of pancakes along with a pan of scrambled eggs, and turning to the bar to set them on some hot pads. At the sight of Harry sipping some tea, she let out a startled yelp and dropped the items she was holding. With Harry's instincts still on high alert from the training he had received thus far, he was able to bring out his wand, and a flick and swish later, all the pancakes and eggs were settled on the aforementioned hot pads that Joyce was working towards.

Harry looked up to Mrs. Summers, as he put his wand away, and with a sheepish look, muttered, "Sorry."

Joyce shook her head from her shock at seeing more magic performed and stated as calmly as possible with her still beating heart, "It's alright Harry. Just not used to having another person up and about this time of day, with Buffy staying up into the early morning hours patrolling, I've gotten used to the fact I am the only one up at this time of morning. Speaking of which, why are you up and sneaking around the house? Aren't you tired?"

Joyce, when listening to Harry's tale, had been horrified of the stunts and danger Harry had faced in his short life. She felt her mother's instincts coming out again for the young man that hadn't had a very happy life thus far. She couldn't help but compare his life with her daughter's, and was surprised with the amount of similarities that both had experienced in their lives.

Harry was surprised at the worry in Mrs. Summers' voice when she spoke about his short rest the night before. "Don't worry about me. I slept just fine, and I always wake up this early to complete my morning workout to start my day," Harry stated as he took another sip at his cup of tea.

Joyce was still eyeing him with concern, when the rest of the gang arrived with all still in their sleep wear and sporting the lovely morning, bed hair. All, except Giles, reached for the pot of coffee that Joyce had made to see if the caffeine might be able to jump-start their systems into normalcy and full consciousness. After everyone had a sufficient amount of their choice of warm beverage in their system, everyone tucked into the breakfast that Mrs. Summers had prepared for them.

In between bites, Giles was asking Harry questions on what they should work on today: research or training. Buffy was staring at her watcher in horror, 'Research!? On a Saturday, when I have access to the new weapons that Harry brought with him!? No way!' Several similar thoughts were going through everyone else's minds, except for Willow and Giles who wanted to know if they could start looking through Harry's considerably sized library for more information concerning the mayor's plans for graduation. They finally decided on a fair trade, after Harry took them on a tour of his trunk, Giles and Willow could pick out ten books each, _each_ being emphasized with the lift of Harry's eyebrows and the slight change of voice tone, and they would then accompany the others to the training compartment to oversee the training and do research at the same time.

With those important matters discussed and decided upon, everyone went back to eating the rest of the quickly disappearing breakfast. When the last of the bacon, eggs, and pancakes had been ingested, Harry noticed that Mrs. Summers was looking at the dishes as if the end of the world was upon her. Taking pity on the woman that had fed them and offered him a roof for his trunk, Harry brought out his wand again while murmuring a few words under his breath, and the dirtied dishes were on their way to the sink that was quickly filling with hot, soapy water. Mrs. Summers and the rest just watched the display with wide eyes. Harry nodded in satisfaction that Mrs. Weasley's charm was doing what it was intended to do, and he once again put his wand away.

Joyce and Willow couldn't believe what Harry had just done. Joyce was happy that she didn't have to do the dishes as she watched them wash, rinse, dry, and stack nicely in their respective places in the cupboards. Willow was watching the action critically wondering if she might be able to match that type of charm using her Wicca magic.

After the dishes had been completed, Harry stood up and stretched for a brief moment, before looking around at the rest of his new acquaintances, and raising his left eyebrow and smirking at their amazed face, and in a mocking way said, "What? It's just magic!"

**AN: Oh my goodness! I am so, so, so, so sorry! Life has decided that it hates me. Working 10 hours of overtime in one week is just not funny at all. I do hope that I haven't lost any readers. I have read the reviews you have been leaving me, and it makes me giddy inside to know people do enjoy reading my story. It seems though that most like the third chapter rather than my second, if someone can let me know why, I'd appreciate it! Like I said in my profile though, I enjoy getting reviews, especially the ones that give me great advice and the ones that let me know what I can improve. And the thing about reviews is, the more I get, the quicker and more frequent my updates will be in the future. Now that my life has settled, somewhat, I am hoping to post once a week, if not more so. So, keep the reviews coming and I'll keep the chapters coming. 'Til next time!**


	5. The Demonstration

Chapter 5

The sun was shining, the temperature was just right, and there was stillness in the air that allowed sounds to seem louder than they actually were. The perfect morning was making one to believe the day would continue being a perfect day.

Suddenly, the tranquility was disrupted with the sounds of metal clashing against metal. The source of the disturbance lay in the backyard of a home in the middle of a peaceful neighborhood. If one were to look into this backyard, it would seem that they had been transported back in time due to the scene they were witnessing. A young man and woman were in the middle of a deadly art, some would think was a dance, if it weren't for the swords the two were attacking each other with at blinding speeds.

Harry and Buffy were testing each other's limits and were enjoying the workout immensely. This friendly spar was refreshing for them both. Harry was finally getting a chance to assess his newfound skills with an individual that was equal in strength to him. Buffy was just enjoying the fight itself. It had been a long time since she had fought someone for practice and not trying to kill the other individual. She had lost the camaraderie she had with Faith from before and had missed it greatly. This had brought back her competitive, and cheerful, attitude she normally had when fighting the baddies.

This had started due to the night previous when Harry had come and told of his story and background. Buffy hadn't been able to get much sleep, which wasn't unusual since she wasn't out half the night and getting home right before dawn. So, her normal schedule would have her sleeping until late morning, or if it were a school day, she'd have to do without the extra sleep. She'd just catch up later in the day with a nap since it was Saturday.

So, she thought she would get a heads up on her training and start early. She wasn't the only one to think this was a good idea.

Harry also was having trouble sleeping, but that was more due to the fact of the difference in time zones. He had slept the previous afternoon, so he was still doing fine after a couple hours of sleep during the night. During his travels, he had gotten used to waking early and getting in some training. He was practicing on all his skills, including his swordplay.

He was just finishing up his stretches when he felt a presence in the surrounding area letting him know he was no longer alone. He turned to find Buffy there watching him carrying a sword of her own. He was momentarily stunned thinking he was going to be by himself for a while. It seems he was wrong.

And thus began the melee. Both were exchanging quick, precise blows. Neither of them was giving the other an inch. Light perspiration was beginning to show on each of their brows. At this point, Harry was on the defensive with Buffy on the attack. She was showing how agile she was by first showing an attack with a downward slash that quickly turned upwards in an attempt to disarm Harry. His hold held true, however, and his sword stayed within his grasp. He had to quickly dodge by backpedaling from a diagonal slash from his opponent. He saw his opportunity when he noticed Buffy had overextended that last attack, and he quickly put together his own twisting action to disarm her. The move was successful and Buffy's sword went flying through the air to land 10 feet from her.

Recognizing that she was at the disadvantage, Buffy starting to utilize her smaller frame to avoid being cornered and admitting defeat. She was dodging every which way, jumping over the quick jabs and slashes from Harry, spinning away from him as fast as she could to reach her sword.

However, it seems luck wasn't on her side on this one. She had just managed to miss being cut on the lower part of her arm, when her foot got caught on a patch of unearthed grass that had been dislodged earlier in the bought. When she landed, she immediately felt the cold metal barely touching the skin at her throat and knew not to move. She looked up into Harry's eyes and saw the strength and determination one would fine in a skilled fighter.

After a moment, he smiled at her and offered her a hand up. She accepted and walked over to pick up her sword. No words had been exchanged during the brawl, as none were needed. They both headed into the house, Buffy to her bathroom and Harry to his trunk to freshen up. Before taking his shower, Harry did turn off the wristband charmed for the additional gravity so he could fully relax while getting cleaned up.

Being fully clean and dressed for the summer weather, Harry exited his trunk and headed on downstairs where he heard the sounds of breakfast being prepared. When he entered the kitchen, he found Buffy's mother at the stove, Buffy's friends were at the table looking like they had just woken up, 'Which they probably had,' he thought. Giles was also there sipping a on a cup of tea.

"Good morning," Harry said as he started to help Joyce, without being asked to. She shot him a grateful look as he started to take over the cooking. With that being taken care of, she started to set the dishes out.

Giles looked up at the greeting, "Good morning Harry. You haven't by chance seen Buffy, have you?"

Not losing any concentration on what he was doing, "Yeah, we were up early and ended up practicing against each other with our swords." This was said with such casualness, one would think he was just talking about the weather.

All activity in the kitchen came to a standstill, except for Harry who was methodically going through the actions of finishing up the eggs and bacon that Joyce had started.

"Swords? As in the sword that Buffy uses on special baddies she fights? A full out sword fight?" came the fast paced questions from Willow. While Xander looked like someone had kicked his pet dog, if he had a pet dog that is.

"We missed a fight between the two of you?" At Harry's nod, he continued, "OH MAN! That is so not cool. I bet she beat you right? I mean, she is the slayer and all."

"No Xander, I didn't beat him. He out maneuvered me and disarmed me after an equal fight. He's pretty skilled," came a voice from just outside the kitchen entrance. This had all heads turning towards the doorway where Buffy was walking through.

This statement brought mixed reactions among the Scooby Gang. Where Xander was upset that Buffy had lost against "the other Brit," both Willow and Oz looked impressed since they had seen Buffy fight countless times. Giles was looking more and more convinced that Harry had absorbed the skills of a slayer. To keep up with a Slayer when you weren't, was one thing, but to beat the Slayer? That was unheard of!

"Well, good to see you keeping up with your training Buffy. I was worried you wouldn't with the switching of Watchers," Giles put in after regaining his thought process.

While this was going on, Harry finished preparing the food and started to dish it out to those at the table. "Yes, and she's in excellent shape. There were times where I thought I was done for. Her size does give her some advantages."

"Well you weren't too bad yourself. You're deadly accurate with that sword, and only my reflexes kept me from getting cut…repeatedly. And your strength was incredible, my arm was tingling after every blow we exchanged," Buffy exclaimed between mouthfuls.

"Well, I'm just using what I have. And that's why I came here, isn't it? To help hone my skills as a Slayer? Well, that's the best way I can think of doing that. By fighting you, I not only sharpen my skills, but I help you out by returning the favor."

That seemed to end the discussion for now, since everyone was getting into their meal. Idle conversation followed, nothing with much seriousness behind it. Harry offered to do the dishes again as he had the night previous, but Joyce declined mentioning that doing the dishes was "the one thing I can do mindlessly so I can think."

"Well, then I guess if you guys want, I can show you my collection of items in my trunk and how I can improve Buffy's training. Take it to the next level, you could say," Harry said with such conviction, Buffy was the first to approve of the next activity for the day.

Harry skipped the normal compartments holding his possessions and went to the compartment that served as his living quarters. He had spent a brief time cleaning up the place before heading to breakfast, so nothing was out of place, mostly anyways, when the group came through to explore this new environment. Harry's bed was a pre-modern murphy bed in that it is hidden within the wall to make for more room. Next to the bed was his expanded bookcase, now home for his collection of books. At the sight, Giles and Willow's eyes went wide with wonder and excitement. Even Buffy and the others looked interested at the collection of literature on display.

"Yes, I'll let you look through them later on when we're done here. I know there's quite a few that hold some promising information. I've read through some of them, but not all of them. So, I'm sure there's some information that all of us would find to be most beneficial. Come on, we're not done yet." At the disappointed looks from the two researchers, Harry sighed, "Ok, ok. You can grab a couple, but hurry it up."

The two quickly looked at the titles available, while quietly discussing with each other what might be the best subjects to be reading and to research. During this entire time, everyone else was looking at them with a look stating "here they go again!"

When five minutes had gone by, Harry had to bring their attention back to the task at hand. "I said a couple of books guys, and you can always come back and grab others. So, grab two and let's go!" he said with a smile on his face. 'Those two would give Hermione a run for her money for sure it seems,' Harry thought as the two rushed about to grab two books apiece.

"Alright guys," he said and noticed the looks from Willow and Buffy, "and gals. This is the area I can most help with, and one that we can all utilize. It's my training room, you could say. Here you will find all sorts of weapons, training gear, practice dummies…you name it and it's probably here somewhere. My favorite though," and as he said this he looked towards Buffy, "my favorite is this!" He then showed them his wristbands.

Everyone looked at him as if he was crazy. "Seriously? And what pray tell, is so special about some wristbands?" asked Xander who looked even more skeptical than the others.

"Quite simple, my good man. These are my training bands. Normally, yes you'd be correct in assuming that these aren't special. However, I am not normal. I have these charmed to generate a gravitational field to my specifications. At all times I have these set to around five times normal gravity. Yes Buffy, that does mean I had them set to this during our spar."

At around the "five times normal gravity," Buffy's jaw had dropped. She remembered seeing Harry wearing those during their fight. He had kept up with her every step of the way during their fight. She couldn't believe it!

"Wait, wait, wait! If you kept up with her with those things on, how fast are you without them?" Giles asked.

"Want to see?" Harry asked with a grin.

He walked over to a training dummy and set it to attack at the normal "Slayer" level of fighting. He then turned off the bands and even took them off to emphasize the point. It was going to be hand to hand for this demonstration.

"Begin!" yelled Buffy after Harry explained how to start the dummy to attack.

One thing would come to mind for those that witnessed the demonstration. They wouldn't be able to explain it, even to each other. But the only conclusion that everyone of them agreed upon was "What the hell?"

The dummy had pretty much been beaten in just a few seconds, and Harry had disappeared during the entire exchange. When the dummy fell to the floor in pieces and Harry reappeared next to it, the others had to remember to close their mouths from the big "O" expressions each of them had. "Any more questions?" If there had been one in the trunk, a cricket would have chosen that moment to let them know it was there. "Alright, let's begin!"

AN: Wow, it's been a while. I should have had this up ages ago. But things kept piling up on me like you wouldn't believe. Family trouble, working too much and then a bad case of writer's block hit me. However, I am back, and should be posting once a week or so. Let me know how you like it guys! And remember...Reviewing is an author's friend. See ya next time!


	6. The Box of Gavrok

Chapter 6

The Mayor and Faith were in his office talking about non-essential things. He couldn't believe that he had a Slayer on his side, and one as pretty as she is was just a bonus in his eyes. He remembers the wrapped package under the chair he currently was sitting in. It had cost him a pretty penny; he knew it and Faith would in a moment. But he knew it was worth it.

He asked her to close her eyes for him. He placed the package in front of her, alongside a plate of chocolate chip cookies. "Okay, you can open them up now."

"Fab! So, what's the special occasion? Or is it an offer for a favor?" Faith replied while reverently looking at the package.

"Faith, I don't need a reason to reward you, but this isn't a free ride either. I need you to pick up a package for me from the airport that is arriving tomorrow night. The plane is coming from Central America with an item essential for my ascension. Without it…well let's just say, those cookies right there wouldn't be the same without the chocolate chips, right?"

While he was talking, Faith was slowly unwrapping the package in front of her. Once the lid was removed, she gasped in delight and wonder. Inside was a gift worthy of any fine warrior. A knife so beautiful, and so deadly at the same time, it had a rounded, pure black handle that would make for a better grip when in use. The blade had a slit through the middle and some spikes towards the hilt that would tear through any flesh it was stabbed into.

"It's a thing of beauty boss!" Faith exclaimed while reverently holding the dagger. She even took a tentative sniff of the blade itself, which still had that new blade smell. She smiled.

"There, the look in your eyes and on your face is reward enough for me. But again, and I can't stress this to you enough, we cannot lose the package arriving. It would be a…disappoint to me if we did. But don't go poking anyone's eyeballs out, at least, not until I let you know who to do it to first. And be careful with it and don't lose it."

Elsewhere….

Buffy and Harry were out on patrol at the local graveyard. The past few days showed a drastic improvement to Buffy's speed and agility that came about from the grueling training that came with sparring against someone that was, in essence, her equal. Harry had learned as much from her and she from him. There was just so much, books and diagrams could help with stance and technique. Seeing moves in actual play, Harry now understood why Slayers were so renowned when fighting the elements of the Dark. He had started to learn to use the assorted weapons that he had placed into his trunk. Giles and Buffy were his teachers in that regard, and he was very thankful for that.

The others hadn't been left out. Rather than research in the library at the school, which would put them in Wesley's line of sight, they used Harry's trunk which was much more comfortable for them since it had a homey quality to it. Harry's books had stemmed up more information on what the Mayor was up to, but still no answers that were forthcoming. Harry even spent some time with Oz explaining a few things about the way Remus had handled being a werewolf for most of his life. He even taught him how to brew the Wolfsbane Potion so he wouldn't be a threat to anybody during the full moon. Willow was watching from the corner of her eye the whole time, so Harry finally invited her over as well. Having two additional people know how to brew the potion wasn't a downside. Xander and Cordelia had also found a cozy corner they could do their own version of "research." After a while, Harry had waved his wand and created a little privacy for them, and everyone else that didn't want to look that way.

A sudden growling to their left signaled that they had some company to deal with. On a brief command of them both, they turned the bracelets off that had been adding additional gravity to their bodies for training purposes. This made them both breath slight sighs of relief to being back to normal gravity. Two vampires suddenly attacked, one going after Harry and the other went towards Buffy. They were newly turned vamps and didn't have the experience that others might have had if they were a few centuries older.

Harry didn't pull out a stake just yet, since he wanted to test a little bit of his skills on this vampire. They traded blows for a few minutes, each landing their fair share, and Harry knew that he would have a few bruises but not much else. He decided to end it, by quickly sweeping the legs out from under the female vamp he was fighting and jabbing the stake he had strapped to his forearm into the middle of her chest. She quickly turned to dust, and it appeared not a moment too soon since Harry was tackled to the ground from the vampire Buffy had just thrown in his direction.

"Sorry Harry!" she yelled as a third vampire decided to join in on the fun and took a swipe at her head.

Jumping back to his feet, he sent a quick glare towards the female in response to her statement. "It's alright, just watch it next time!" as he ducked a viscous kick from his new opponent. This one seemed to fair a little better than the other, and it had a fair bit more strength behind his attacks. With an uppercut that launched the vampire up into the air, and a jump kick that forced the vampire into the side of a crypt, Harry staked the dazed vampire. Taking a quick look around, and finding Buffy kicking her vampire backwards after a quick jab with her own stake causing it to turn to dust, Harry found they had defeated all the vampires within sight.

"Well that was fun!" he exclaimed while dusting off his pants. "And you do this every night, I'm jealous."

"Trust me, its not normally that easy," Buffy said as she straightened her shirt. She didn't notice that Harry's eyes had moved to her rather abdomen as he saw some skin. Shaking his head to clear those thoughts, he focused on the question Buffy had sent his way on where to go next. He was about to reply when another snarl not too far from them, interrupted his answer.

Looking at her with a small smirk in place, he finally answered, "I believe we have been summoned off, that way." He emphasized this by pointing his hand in the direction the sound had come from.

"Oh thank you, Mr. Obvious. It's not like I couldn't figure that one out." And off they went to finish the patrol.

The next morning, found Buffy discussing college acceptance letters with her mother. Then at school, discussing the same thing. She was happy for Willow, being accepted to schools all across the country, and even to Oxford. She had jokingly said that's where "they made Gileses." Xander's announcement about backpacking his way through summer wasn't too out of line for him. She, however, wasn't as excited. As the Slayer, or one of two slayers on the good side, she had to stay in Sunnydale and watch over the Hellmouth. This had her depressed because she wanted to get out of here. OH she would take care of the Mayor and finish the year, but after she would like to leave as soon as she could.

She actually expected something along those lines from him. She was still in a down mood when she entered the library. Harry hadn't come to the school as he wasn't a student yet, and he didn't have the right qualifications. He was going to be working with Angel on researching more about the Mayor's plans and how to possibly recapture Faith.

Upon her entrance to the library, Wesley jumped on the opportunity to question her about "that wizard" and what she had been up to the past few days.

"Have you been hanging around the wizard Buffy? I warned you not to, that his kind aren't acceptable!" he exclaimed while showing signs of going red in the face due to anger.

Buffy ignored the question and stated something that had Wesley, and Giles, shocked for a moment. "I want to leave for a while."

"Leave?! What do you mean 'leave?' Now?" Wesley asked after getting over his momentary shock of the statement.

"I don't mean now. After this thing with the Mayor, and capturing Faith, I need time away from here. A break."

"You're the slayer you can't just leave! And as part of the Council, I forbid you from going anywhere. You're responsibility is here," Wesley said as if that would be the end to that nonsense. "We don't know anything related to the ascension plans…"

Buffy interrupted him at this point, "I know, and we're working on that right now. I do think that we need to take the fight to the Mayor and Faith, rather than sitting here in the background twiddling our thumbs!"

"Buffy's right, we're running out of time. What's your plan?" Giles asked while he was sipping some tea.

Here Buffy was a little worried, "Plan? I have to have a plan? I'm more a proactive person with pep, can't I continue with that?" At a look from Giles, she said, "No I don't have a plan yet. But I get what you're asking. If we are to take the fight to them, we do need a plan."

A plane landed at the Sunnydale airport. Now this wouldn't have been unusual, except for the fact it was nearing the early hours of the morning. A man, with a snake tattoo on his face, stepped out carrying a medium sized black box that was attached to his hands by hand cuffs. He approached a car that was a little ways away from the plane, which had a solitary figure at the front that, upon close inspection, was a vampire.

"Where's the Mayor?" the man asked as he was about to hand the box to the vamp, in exchange for the suitcase of money on the ground.

"He couldn't make it. I'll take it to him," the vampire said as he offered the case of money to the other.

" The deal was for him to be here in person. I don't like surprises. The cost just took a jump, you can…" at this point the guy stopped speaking and looked down at his chest. An arrowhead was pierced through his shirt, staining it with his blood. He toppled sideways, dying. In the background, the vampire noticed the woman the Mayor had assigned to help that night. She was holding a bow in her right hand and had a proud smirk on her face for the kill she just made.

"Surprise!" she said to the now corpse on the ground.

She quickly jumped down from her vantage point and approached the vampire and her boss' package. She tells the vampire to un-cuff the package from the dead man's wrists. But no keys were to be found. Faith takes her new toy out of her belt and proceeds to slicing the man's hands off his body.

They left in the limo the vampire was driving, to head back to City Hall. Faith took the box inside, missing the blonde slayer off in the bushes watching her every move.

Not for the first time did Buffy wonder about her plan to spy. But now she was glad she had. That box would have to be important for Faith to personally be taking it to the Mayor herself. She quickly dashed off before someone spotted her.

Inside, Faith had just placed the box on the desk, and let the Mayor know that she had made an offer the currier couldn't survive.

"What thought, initiative, you are simply the best. I would take you over Buffy any day. You're more Slayer than one man can handle." Noticing that Faith's mood had taken a nosedive, he said to her, "Now you're still not sore about that whole Buffy Angel thing, are you? I know I shouldn't have mentioned the "B" word. But cheer up! You're better than that."

He quickly reached over to make sure she wouldn't finish opening the chest, "Don't do that! You don't want to do that."

Following the limo had proven to be a good choice, Buffy had found out what the box was. And the next morning was informing the others on what she found out. "The Box of Gavrok, which contains some type of demonic energies our Mayor needs to chow down on for his plans to succeed," Buffy finished explaining to Xander and Wesley. Just then, Giles and Willow came in the room with plans of City Hall. Buffy quickly pointed out where they were keeping the box.

Wesley wasn't happy where things were going. "Stop! Everybody stop! Now I am in charge here! We can't just gallivant into City Hall! I'm sure the Mayor has some supernatural safeguards in place." This caused everyone to stop what they were doing. "Ah, I see you forgot about that!"

Buffy didn't seem to think so, turning to Willow she asked, "Looks like a job for Wiccan girl. You up for it? It'll mean big time danger."

"I eat danger for breakfast!" the red head said. And pointedly ignored the comment from Xander that he made of her panicking in the face of breakfast foods. He was heading out to gather ingredients for a ritual to take care of the box, since you needed to destroy it physically and magically.

Buffy, Willow, and Giles headed back to Buffy's place to bring Harry and Angel up to speed. Harry agreed that they needed to get the box away from the Mayor as quickly as possible, and offered to teach Willow a few tricks, magic wise, just in case something unexpected happened. They were planning on attacking City Hall that night after dark, of course.

AN: Well, my story has had over 7000 hits!! I'm ecstatic about it! I'm glad people are enjoying this story. And I'm glad to be back in the writing scheme of things again as well. So, here's the next part of the story. I know things are a little different than that of the series, but that's the point of fanfiction, right? Also, I would like to mention that I have added a second story, hope you all will go and read that as well. And as always, don't forget to review! Please! Until next time!


	7. The Rescue

Chapter 7

The gang planned throughout the rest of the afternoon and got ready after the sun went down for Angel to accompany Buffy and Willow. Willow had received some valuable pointers from Harry in regards to some protection spells. She felt ready in case anything unexpected may occur.

After the sun had set, Buffy and Willow met Angel at City Hall to finalize their plans and then climbed up onto the roof to find where the box may have been stashed. They approached a skylight above a meeting room and noticed a faint glow emanating from it that wasn't from the normal lighting of the room. When they looked down onto the table below, they noticed the large black box Buffy had described Faith carrying into the building.

"That's it!" Buffy exclaimed in an excited whisper. Looking at Willow, she asked, " You ready Wills?"

Looking down herself at the box that exuded a feeling of evil, she replied, "Y-yeah, I am." She couldn't help but stutter just a little due to the evil she was feeling. 'What could possibly be in that thing,' she thought to herself as she prepared the Wicca spell to remove the glowing shield of protection around it.

With Willow gathering the ingredients for the spell and getting into the right mindset, Buffy opened up the windowpane that was directly above the box. Looking over at Willow, Buffy found her to be ready and stepped back to allow her to do her "mumbo jumbo." Willow got into position, and started her spell while sprinkling the powdered ingredients through the open window. With each passing second, the shield started to glow brighter and brighter, before finally dissipating with a slight flash of light.

With a smile of satisfaction, she waved Buffy and Angel to the box below while saying, "Tah dah!"

"Well done Willow! You can start heading back now, we'll take it from here," Angel said as he started to get the harness ready to lower Buffy into the room below. With a nod, Willow gathered her things and headed back the way they had come. 'Now to get down the ladder and meet back up with Giles and Wesley.'

Elsewhere…

Xander had just arrived with the ingredients that Willow had specified to get in order to completely destroy the box. He was headed to the library to meet up with Oz and Harry. He was still getting used to the newest individual to grace the Scooby Gang. He had to admit it was kind of cool to have another magic wielder on their side. 'Even if it is a different type of magic than Willow's,' he thought to himself as he strode through the empty hallways of the school.

He was the same age as them, but he acted more mature than Giles he had noticed. 'It must be what's happening back in England that has him so riled up.' After hearing Harry's story, he immediately knew he would fit well in Sunnydale for the time being. He had asked Buffy for assistance and she had agreed after they had taken care of their own issue with the mayor.

Upon reaching the library carrying the sack of ingredients, he noticed that Harry was talking with Oz about the potion he had promised to help him control the wolf inside him.

"The Wolfsbane Potion is a more difficult potion to brew. In fact, I only know of a select few individuals that would be able to brew it and be successful. I trained with one such individual so I could help my friend. I have some already started in my trunk that I'll show you. And after that, I'll teach you how to make it," at this point in the conversation, Harry noticed that Xander had returned from his little shopping trip. "Xander! How'd everything go?"

"Fine, got the ingredients right here. Some look so alike it's not even funny!"

Harry had to chuckle at that, since that was something he had thought when he had first started Hogwarts. "I know what you mean. But after a while, they don't anymore. Trust me on this." Harry started to go through the different items that was in the sack and arranged them on the table. "We'll get things organized and wait for the others to return to actually make the potion." The other two in the room nodded with him.

"Cool with me, now let's get back to that potion of yours…" Oz said as they finished laying out the ingredients.

Back at City Hall…

With the rig ready, Angel attached the harness to Buffy and prepared to lower her to the room to retrieve the box. It wasn't a strain at all for the vampire, with his enhanced strength, to lower Buffy down with the rig he made.

"Just a bit more!" Buffy said as she was almost within reach of the box. She started to feel the same evil that Willow had felt earlier and she knew they needed to destroy this thing as soon as possible. A few more inches of rope released from Angel got her to the spot needed to grab the box. "Got it! Haul me up!"

Angel heard her and tried to pull her back up, but the rope had gotten stuck somehow. He tugged with as much strength as he could that wouldn't snap the rope. "I can't! The damn thing is stuck!"

The commotion of Angel trying to bring Buffy back to the roof, and their talking, alerted some nearby guards that something wasn't quite right. The guards started to investigate by going through the nearby rooms looking for intruders. Finding nothing, they all thought the same thing at the same time, "THE BOX!!"

Angel was trying everything to get her out of that room. He could sense other vampires on their way to their location.

"Angel! Hurry! I'd like to very much come up now please!" Buffy exclaimed while floating in mid air with the box in her grasp.

Suddenly the doors to the room opened up with a "BANG!" The guards stormed into the room, but stopped when they saw the blonde holding the box in mid air. For a brief moment, Buffy and the guards were just staring at each other not really believing what they were seeing.

"Get her!" one of the guards yelled to his fellow vampires.

"Oh boy," Buffy said to herself as she tried to dodge as best she could while being strapped. "Angel! Cut me loose!"

Not wasting a second, Angel did as asked, and he cut the line Buffy was hanging from. He also joined her by jumping through the opening and landing on the table below. With Buffy free from the rope, she dropped the box on the table to engage a couple of the vampires that came through the door. She was dodging their punches left and right. She had to get her footing back under her before she could go on the offensive. With a quick right hook, one of her attackers was rendered unconscious after hitting his head on the wall from the strength of Buffy's punch.

"Everything all right, Angel?" she asked while trading blows with her other attacker. Ducking a roundhouse kick, she retaliated with her own roundhouse that was a successful hit. Her attacker didn't seem phased, however and came after her once again.

"Just peachy!" he replied while dodging his own attacker's fists and kicks. He swung his fist at the annoying vampire in front of him and found success in the loud "CRACK" of the jaw breaking. Nodding in satisfaction, Angel then proceeded to grab the box and swung it at the last attacker. Hitting the vampire in the head was enough to stun him for a second, in which Angel dropped the box for a chair and swung that onto the other's back. Both Buffy and Angel somehow gathered the vampires onto the other side of the large table the box had been placed on and proceeded to topple the table onto the vampires to give them enough time to escape the room with the box.

The vampires gave chase through the hallways following the intruding Slayer and traitor vampire. They were hot on their heels when Angel and Buffy finally came to the front entrance and ran down the steps, only to stop and jump over the hedge to the right of the doorway. The vampires came running out, looking in all directions for the two that had taken their boss's box. A black van that Giles and Wesley were in, came screeching through the parking lot headed in the opposite direction that Angel and Buffy had gone to distract the vampires. The plan worked, and the vampires were running after the van as if their life depended on it.

Noticing the coast was clear, Buffy and Angel hightailed it out of there to head back to the library. Everything had been a success and it was time to take care of the box they had just stolen from the Mayor.

After the vampires lost the van, they returned to City Hall. Inside, they found the Mayor in the conference room that they were previously fighting in. He was not happy.

"Well…" he said while looking at all the damage that was done to his newly redone conference room. "This is very unfortunate. I just had this room redecorated for Pete's sake! At the tax payer's expense, of course." Here he paused, still looking around. "OH! That's right…and they've got my box!!" he exclaimed while sweeping both hands towards one of the chairs that had been damaged. He had a look of rage across his face at the loss of one of the most important pieces for his Ascension.

"That may be, but looky what we have here!" a female voice behind the Mayor said in gleeful voice.

Looking around towards the doorway, the Mayor took notice of what his Faith had in her possession. She was holding the red headed Wicca in a one armed hold, with her knife poised at the girl's throat. Faith seemed pleased with herself for her finding of the Wicca. A smirk came across the Mayor's face as he realized that all was not lost just yet.

Back at the library…

Buffy was upset to say the least. Her friend had been captured! When they had returned to the library, they found everyone present except for Willow. Buffy and Angel thought she was with Giles and Wesley, and they had believed her to have stayed with Buffy and Angel.

"How did this happen?" Buffy asked to the group in barely restrained anger. Anger at whom, she didn't know. Herself? Giles and Wesley? It didn't matter, her friend was in the hands of her enemy.

"We thought she'd stay with you," Giles said as he walked around the box on the table.

"They must have grabbed her when she hit the ground. We should have thought something like this might happen. I'm sorry Buffy," Angel said as he leant against an arm rail to the higher level of the library.

"Listen, it's no one's fault. But how do we fix this? We need to focus and deal!" the blonde Slayer said while looking at her friends. "Oz, I swear I won't let any harm come to her."

Oz appreciated hearing this from Buffy. He really cared for Willow. Everybody traded ideas on what needed to be done. Xander said to do a full assault, where Giles argued that wouldn't work since they'd probably kill Willow straight away. Wesley didn't make the atmosphere any better when he said they might have already killed her by that time. This was met with Oz getting out of his seat to throw a punch at the stuck up British Watcher. Harry had anticipated this and held the young man in place.

"No, they wouldn't. They know what she means to us. She's too valuable as long as the box is…in…our…." here Buffy trailed off as another idea came to her. "We make a trade!"

"Absolutely not! I forbid it! This box is too valuable! It must be destroyed!" Wesley exclaimed.

"No, we call the Mayor to setup a meeting. It's the only way!" Buffy argued with eyes flashing dangerously.

Xander made a comment about volunteering to knock some sense into Wesley by hitting him.

"Wesley, you want to duck and cover. I don't think you can take on all of us!" Buffy said in a dangerous voice.

"DAMN IT! Listen to me! This box is key to the Mayor's Ascension. Thousands and thousands of lives depend on us destroying it right away! I want to help as much as the rest of you, but we'll find another way to do it!" Wesley argued back to the blonde.

Buffy and Wesley traded comments where Wesley pretty much said it was Buffy's fault for taking the fight to the Mayor. Everything went down from there to an arguing frenzy. Harry and Oz were the only two not shouting at each other. Harry was getting tired of this and cast a wide ranged silencing spell.

"Alright, all of you! Enough!" Harry exclaimed to the silenced library. "Arguing won't help Willow right now. So start acting like adults, or that spell won't come off anytime soon." He said this with a face that dared any of them to argue. It was actually a funny sight seeing all of their mouths still flapping trying to make words come out. Oz took it a step further by throwing the ingredients for the spell to destroy the box to a nearby wall.

Everyone looked at Oz strangely for that action. But it made sense when that was their chance of destroying the box once and for all. Oz knew that Willow was more important to him, and the rest of her friends in the room. Harry cancelled the spell on the group and Buffy told Giles to make the call.

City Hall…

In a storage room by the looks of things, Willow was trying to open the window to try and escape. With no luck, and panting from the attempt, she then looked for another means to get out of the room as quickly as she could. When she pulled out a drawer, she only had a moment to look at the contents, before a vampire with his game face on opened the door on.

"What are you doing?" the vampire asked as he slowly approached the young mortal in front of him.

"Uh…I'm…looking for a sucking candy. Cause my mouth dries out when I'm nervous, or being held prisoner." When the vampire never slowed his movements towards her, she realized she might have said something wrong. "I suddenly think 'sucking' is the wrong word to use around vampires." She closed her eyes for a brief second of concentration. "Hey! Did you get permission to be in here and eat the hostage? I don't think so! You're going to be in big trouble when the Mayor…"

At this point, the vampire grabbed Willow's arms pinning them to her side. Growling at the figure in his grasp, "Just a little taste, that's all I'm asking for."

Willow groaned in pain, but still concentrated on the task at hand. When the vampire leaned down to sink his fangs in her neck, he suddenly went to dust. Willow had levitated a pencil from the drawer to drive into his back.

Gasping for breath, she quickly made her way out of the room and down the hallway. She had to stop suddenly and make a quick dash into another room as she heard voices coming her way.

"I don't think she'll be coming back here tonight sir," came Faith's voice through the closed door that hid Willow.

"You ever have a dog?" the Mayor asked as he shut the door to his office. When Faith looked at him funny he continued, "I did, and Irish Setter. Dogs are loyal, fiercely loyal. They'll do anything for a friend. Buffy's like a dog, and before you can say Jimmy cracked corn, you'll get to see me kill her like one too!"

When the voices died down, Willow snuck out of the room she was in and entered the Mayor's office. She searched through a few things, before opening the cupboard with the Mayor's collection of demonic artifacts. She found a secret compartment, which had the Books of Ascension in it. She was nearly hyperventilating at this point. 'Here's everything we need!' she thought in excitement. It was at this point she remembered a spell she read about and had asked Harry about.

Flashback

While going through one of Harry's spell books, Willow had come upon one she thought was unfair to a point. "Harry? Why is there a spell in here that will duplicate any object? Isn't that kind of cheating in a way?"

Harry came over to look at the spell in question, "Oh? Let's see…oh that spell. Not quite, that's only a temporary duplication spell. It will allow an object, let's say a rare book, to be duplicated for a short amount of time. Enough to where the information in it could be copied down, and the copy from the spell would just disappear. It isn't permanent."

"Oh! I see, handy, very handy!"

End Flashback

Remembering the spell, she started to copy the books and shrink them with another spell. Since she wasn't used to this kind of magic, it took some time for her to get all of the books copied. When she finally finished, the door to the office opened and Faith stepped in.

"Well, check out the book worm! Anybody with brains would have tried to escape out of this place as soon as possible, but no! Not you! You go around snooping where you don't belong!" Looking at the books the red head was looking through, she continued, "And it looks like you know too much, which leads to killin!"

Willow tried to talk her way out of the situation, but somehow it didn't work. It didn't have anything to do with her saying how Faith had screwed up her life. How she didn't make the most of the things she had, like friends and a social life. She figured she had gone too far when she called Faith a "selfish, worthless, waste." Faith didn't appreciate that and punched the girl in the face.

"You hurt me, I'll hurt you. It's just I'm more efficient and you're begging for some pain!"

"Girls, I don't want to separate you two. Faith, come on, something has come up and you know I don't like to repeat myself. I just receive one heck of an interesting phone call," the Mayor said as he sat behind his desk.

The School Cafeteria…

The gang was waiting in the cafeteria with the box. They had made the phone call and the offer. Harry had setup some proximity wards to let them know when their company was coming. He needn't have bothered, when they announced their presence to everyone by disconnecting the power. Angel made a comment about seeing okay after Xander said he couldn't.

The doors opened up and the Mayor strolled in with Faith behind him. She had willow at knife point once again. Some vampires were also in his entourage. He stepped forward when Buffy did the same.

"This is exciting, isn't it! Secret meetings in the dead of night! Exchange of prisoners and goods! I feel like we should all be wearing trench coats to fit the mood!" the Mayor said in a gleeful mood. He almost had his box back! His eyes scanned the room while saying this and noticed a face he didn't recognize.

Harry felt the Mayor's eyes on him and looked him in the face. He was surprised when he noticed the Mayor actually seemed stunned when he looked at him. 'He must know who and what I am.'

"So you're the wizard my Faith was telling me about. Can't say I'm impressed much. You don't seem like a threat to me."

"You would be surprised," Harry said in a deadly calm voice.

Buffy took the conversation over. "Let her go!"

The Mayor looked at her and simply said, "No. Not until I have the box in my hands! So you're the girl that has caused me all this trouble. I don't see what's special about you. I mean, you're skinny, pretty maybe. Now why couldn't things have worked out between you, Angel, and my Faith. I don't see much of a future for you two."

Here the Mayor went into a conversation about how Angel and Buffy could never work. With his immortality and not being truly happy, Angel wasn't much of an individual that Buffy could have a relationship with.

"Just make the trade!" the Mayor finished.

Faith brought Willow to Buffy and Angel brought the box back to her. At this point, Principal Snyder had to step into the room. He took the box and said, "I bet I'll find drugs in this box!"

The Mayor stepped in at this point and Snyder proved his cowardice by immediately backpedaling his accusations. One of the security guards, whom Snyder gave the box to, opened the black box. "No! Don't!" the Mayor exclaimed. It was too late, a insect like create jumped out of the box and killed the poor man by attacking his face.

"Open the door!" Snyder said to the other guard.

"Don't do it! We can't let that thing escape!" Giles exclaimed in a panicked rush.

Everyone started to look for the creature. The walls were looked at and the ceiling as well. The creature suddenly fell on top of the Mayor's face.

"Boss!" Faith exclaimed. She quickly grabbed the creature and tossed it aside.

The cuts and abrasions healed on the Mayor's face. "I wouldn't leave that open if I were you," he said as he looked at the box. Buffy quickly slammed the lid down, cutting off the legs of another of the creatures. She then felt a creature jump on her back. Relying on her instinct, she immediately fell onto the floor and smashed the creature. Rolling off of the floor and onto her feet, she looked at the dead being with disgust.

Faith noticed another of the creatures on a nearby wall. She threw her knife at the thing, scaring poor Wesley half to death. She nailed it, and it died with a horrible screech. The Mayor grabbed his box and made his way to the now opened doorway.

"Is that all of them?" Oz asked.

"No, there's about 50 billion of those little critters in here. Raise your hand if you're invulnerable? No, didn't think so. Faith? Faith!" the Mayor said to the black haired beauty. She was looking at her knife she had thrown at the wall. She was leaving it behind. She quickly followed the Mayor out of the school.

"Why could you be like normal kids and deal in drugs!" Snyder said as he held up a chair like a shield to protect him. He quickly left as well.

Buffy went over and pulled the knife out of the creature and the wall. "That went swimmingly!" Wesley exclaimed.

"It was alright," Buffy said examining the blade.

The School Library…

The gang was back at the library listening to Willow recall her time in City Hall. She had just finished telling of the encounter with Faith, when Giles interrupted her.

"Willow, are you telling me you had your hands on the Books of Ascension?" Giles asked while holding his glasses in one hand.

"Yes, volumes one through five," replied Willow with a thoughtful look on her face.

"Is there anything you can remember from them? Anything at all?"

"I was kind of in a hurry to get out of there, and I skimmed through some of the lesser details. But I don't think you have to worry for another few days."

"And why's that?" Wesley asked in a sarcastic tone.

Harry had been looking at Willow and noticed a mischievous sparkle in her eyes. "You used the spell I taught you, didn't you Willow?" he asked with a slight smirk on his face. That slight smirk turned into a full smirk when Willow answered in the positive.

"What spell?" Wesley asked.

"A duplication spell that will allow a person to copy an item, in this case a few books, that will last for a week," Harry answered with a slight glare towards the other British Watcher.

At this point, Willow produced the five shrunken books, which she enlarged, and gave to the older Watcher. "Here you go Giles! See what you can make of them, and you better hurry to get all the information copied down."

Giles looked as if Christmas had come early. His smile was so wide it was funny!

Wesley piped in his two cents by saying the information in the texts must be worth it for Buffy to risk everyone's lives for that box.

The next day, Buffy and Willow were talking beneath a tree about their future plans about college. Willow let Buffy know that she wasn't going to be leaving her anytime soon, and she produced an acceptance letter to Sunnydale University. Buffy was ecstatic and tackled Willow to the ground in her happiness. In the end, it was just another day in Sunnydale.

AN: Another chapter for you all to read! I'm getting some great feedback with this story. I appreciate everyone that's read it and especially those that have reviewed it! Thanks! I still would love to hear from any that read my story. So please! Please! Review this story! The more reviews I have, the quicker I'll update! Also, if you haven't already, read my other story. That one I'll update every other week or so, unless it gets popular. My main focus is this story right now. Again, enjoy! And review!


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